Europe to see above-normal temperatures this spring

Europe is forecast to experience on average higher than normal temperatures for the March-May period across Scandinavia, the UK and most of mainland Europe with slightly below normal temperatures confined to Iberia, weather forecaster Weather Services International (WSI) said in its latest seasonal outlook.

According to WSI, the lack of Atlantic blocking will result in more mild westerly flows.

“The European winter pattern, which drove one of the rainiest winters in modern UK history, has been characterized by a super-charged westerly Atlantic jet stream that has transported copious amounts of Atlantic moisture into western Europe,” WSI meteorologist Todd Crawford said.

Dynamical and statistical models all suggest a continuation of this general pattern well into spring, with very warm temperatures across eastern Europe and near-normal temperatures and very wet conditions across western Europe, WSI, which predicted a mild remainder of the winter in its January outlook, said.

“While there is no sign of the strong jet stream weakening heading into March at this time, we will be monitoring the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) going forward for potential changes that would result in a notably different pattern. We feel that risk is low at this time.”

Temperatures and weather patterns have a significant impact on energy consumption. Cold weather in the winter months means demand for gas and electricity is strongest in northern Europe, with a notable rise in electricity use in France, where demand for electric heating is high.